Yesterday afternoon, I went for the longest run of my life. The total distance was 6.5 miles, and it took me 73 minutes to complete. I ran every step of the way – albeit somewhat slowly – and I felt pretty good at the end.
I’ve now reached a point where I can run quite far without getting winded, which feels great. The only thing holding me back at the end of my run was tired legs, which is no surprise since I this run was considerably longer than my previous best. Nonetheless, I now know that I’m capable of completing a 10k race (and then some).
My previous best came just a day earlier when I logged 4.5 miles in 51 minutes on Sunday. If you do the math, you’ll see that my pace was actually a bit faster during my longer run on Monday. Unfortunately, I don’t have a screenshot to include here, as RunKeeper crapped out and lost its GPS signal shortly after I started.
What makes this feat even more impressive is that we’re currently on vacation, and I’ve had a very bad track record when it comes to exercising on the road. In fact, this very trip, made every June, has derailed my fitness progress more than once in the past. But not this year.
The ability to run on vacation is actually a big part of why I wanted to start running in the first place. After all, there’s no special equipment required. All I need is my running shoes and a bit of time.
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